A Thousand Words
by CierraLuv97
Summary: A picture paints a thousand words, but a thousand words are worth far more than one picture. 365 one-shots for every day of the year, starting the day of the battle, from the perspectives of dozens of characters.
1. Author's Note

_A picture paints a thousand words.  
_

_Can a thousand words say more than a picture?_

_Hi, everyone, I'm back, with a completely new project, different than anything I've ever tried before. I've always thought that drabbles, when written correctly, are terribly meaningful and important. Less is more, as they always say, and I couldn't agree more. With that in mind, I started to write this - a series of moments, one for each day after the Battle of Hogwarts. My goal was to make it full circle, to have a drabble for each day of the year up to the anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts. _

_But life doesn't always work out the way you planned. Instead of writing drabbles, I ended up with what I call mini-shots: chapters too long to be considered a drabble but too short to be considered a one-shot (for me, a one-shot is 1,500 to 4,000 words). And I ended up really liking these. Another thing I'm doing that's new is involving many, many characters. Their stories about their life after the Battle will interweave and tangle and basically create a huge mess. Each chapter is around a thousand words, and most really focus on the relationships between characters. Not strictly romantic, either. There will be family stories, friendship stories, enmity stories. There will also be a few that involve characters and their thoughts about themselves.  
_

_Also: usually, I offer a suggested song to listen to for each chapter during my collection of one-shots. But since these chapters really are too short, I decided instead to give you a playlist of songs to shuffle and play while reading. Then I realised that no one is going to care enough to get all those songs in a playlist and shuffle them. :( So, I decided that I'll just distribute the songs evenly - every three chapters, I'll list another song that can last you for the next three chapters. Okay?  
_

_I also really liked having a table of contents, so I'm adding one here. WARNING: This is not a random collection of drabbles and scribbles - it's a story, and you need to read certain chapters to understand the rest. If you want to skip over certain chapters, that's fine, but some of it might not make sense to you. This will just tell you the dates, the character, and the setting.  
_

_That's all, really. I hope you guys like it.  
_

_~ Cierra_, _May 22nd_

**Table of Contents  
**

**finale** (May 2nd, 1998) | _full cast_ | _hogwarts great hall_

**once, maybe twice **(May 3rd, 1998) | _alicia spinnet _| _hogwarts great hall_

**carpe diem** (May 4th, 1998) | _hermione granger | hogwarts grounds__  
_

**when life gives you lemons **| _cho chang | hogwarts great hall_**  
**


	2. May 2nd, 1998

****_Here's the first chapter! Since it's the prologue, and it's kind of setting the scene for everything else, it's a little less than half as long as the other mini-shots. I'll be posting the song for the 1st three chapters in the next chapter (this one is meant to be read in silence). _

**finale**

It was over. It really was _over_.

For a second, silence reigned over the students of Hogwarts, the teachers, the Death Eaters. How could it not? The human mind can only process information so fast, and this was a lot of information.

Voldemort, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to his enemies, who feared him, the Dark Lord to his followers who also feared him, was dead.

Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived to those who admired him, Harry to those who loved him, was alive, holding two wands.

Yes, a lot of realisations to make in that split second.

Dennis Creevy stared, his mouth wide open, his sweet face alight with shock and joy. And sadness. In that moment, he couldn't wait to find Colin. Then, in that moment, he remembered Colin was dead.

Minerva McGonagall closed her eyes, letting out a silent thank you during the quiet. To whom, she didn't know. She'd never been particularly religious. Of course, there was time to change that now. There was time for _everyone _to change _everything_.

Draco Malfoy let himself relax, breathe. The Dark Lord was dead, finally. No more whispered conversations, no more both heavy and shallow breathing. He knew he might go to jail for being a Death Eater and he might spend the rest of his life there, but still – Azkaban is better than being a Death Eater. _Anything _is better than being a Death Eater.

Molly Weasley knew she was going to cry. She could feel the tears building now. She had no idea, however, whether they were tears of joy or sadness or just plain tears. Her son was dead, surely. Some of her friends were dead. But the rest of her family, her husband and her children and those she considered her children, they were alive. They were safe.

Hermione Granger blinked once, then twice. Was this real? This _was _real! Harry was alive and well, and so was Ginny, and Ron, and Neville, and Luna, and… In her euphoria, she could scarcely remember those who were gone. She was focused on the present, and in the present she wanted to find them all and hold them and be held, to cry on their shoulders and comfort them in their tears. She felt Ron squeeze her hand – he was one less person she'd have to find later in the confusion. He'd already found her.

For a second, silence reigned over the _survivors._

And then it let go.


	3. May 3rd, 1998

****_Wow, here's the first real chapter! Sorry it took me so long to get it up, I was on vaycay. I'd written it a while ago, just never posted (I've got the next five one-shots written already, just so I don't get behind). This one actually gave me loads of trouble, for some reason. ;/  
_

_MUSIC:_ "Teenage Hearts" _by _Allstar Weekend - _just listen. It's the song that I will one day dance to at my wedding, so it is kind of important. :) You'll get another song on May 6th. Okay, enjoy!_

**once, maybe twice**

"So now what?" It was the third time Katie had asked that question as she, Alicia, and Leanne sat in the Great Hall of Hogwarts.

"I don't know," mumbled Alicia, her head resting on her hand, the tips of her hair resting in her porridge. She honestly couldn't care less, though. She was just so exhausted. Yesterday had been a strange mix of sobbing and celebrating, and it left her feeling rather as if she had a particularly vicious hangover.

"We can't just _stay _here," insisted Katie, still carrying on. Unlike Alicia, she was edgy, hyper, still nervous about everything. Katie was nervous a lot of the time now. The attack in the sixth year had unnerved Alicia's friend. The staying at home while her twelve year old brother Patrick, whom Katie loved more than anything, had very nearly killed her. He was sitting with them now, holding Katie's hand as if he might never let it go and staring at something none of them could see.

"Shut it, Katie," muttered Leanne, who was sitting across from them, her head drooping. She looked half asleep as well. She had more of a right than any of them – while Alicia and Katie had been relatively safe, Leanne had been here, in the heart of the enemy's lair, the entire.

"Well, _somebody's_ cranky," observed Katie, finally distracted from her arguing. "Did your little snogging session with Neville not end well, then?"

Leanne flushed, and Alicia finally lifted her head, smirking along with Katie. Patrick snapped out of his reverie. "You kissed _Neville_?" he very nearly yelped. "He's awesome! He killed the snake!"

"Looks like all those months hiding out in the Room of Requirement paid off, hmm?" snickered Alicia.

"Well, we were all shut up in one room, what do you expect?" shrugged Leanne, but she was smiling wistfully. "And it wasn't a _snogging session_. Just a quick kiss."

"Just a quick kiss – Leanne, you _attacked _him," teased Alicia, feeling much more awake now.

"It was almost cannibalistic," added Katie. "I thought you were going to eat his face."

"Gross," breathed Patrick, his face alight.

"And then," continued Katie, "who _knows _what you two got up to after everyone _else _had - "

"Er, Katie?" interrupted Alicia quickly, her eyes flicking to Patrick. "Leave it for later, kay?" Katie cocked her head, before she nodded, flushing slightly.

"No, tell it now," said Patrick.

"It was just once. Once!" Leanne repeated for emphasis when Alicia and Katie exchanged sceptical looks. Then she hesitated, smiling slightly. "Maybe twice." The three girls met each other's eyes, and then burst into laughter. Slightly hysterical laughter, but laughter all the same. At some point, Alicia started crying as well, because laughter was Fred and Fred was gone.

"I miss him too," mumbled Katie, almost too quiet for Alicia to hear. "Who's going to help George put glue on the toilets now?" she added, making Alicia laugh feebly through tears. It really was something that shouldn't be laughed at, however. Who _was _going to help George?

A few minutes later, when Alicia had hiccupped the last tears away, Leanne cleared her throat. "Since you lot are so interested in my love life," she began, trying to distract them, "it was only that one time. I was keeping my word on a promise. I didn't kiss him because he killed that stupid snake."

At this, Alicia opened her eyes with some effort. Katie, who had never been a fan of romance, rolled her eyes. Leanne had been successful in distracting them. "What promise?" asked Alicia.

"Well, it was before the battle, and me and Neville were getting ready, and he said, 'You can still get out of here if you want, you know. We're probably all going to die, you know that, right?' and I said, 'Well, with that attitude, we will' and he said 'Come on, Leanne, you know they outnumber us' and I said 'Don't be so off-hand about it, like you're not scared, Neville, because I know you are, we all are, but we still have to believe we actually have any bloody shot of winning' and he said –"

"Is this going anywhere?" interrupted Katie.

Leanne glared at her. "As I was _saying_, he said, 'So you really think we're not going to all be dead in two hours' and I said 'I'm so sure that I'll _kiss _you when we win this' and he said 'You say that like it's a bad thing' and I said 'No, it isn't' and he said 'Well, I'll hold you to that'. And then we won, and then we kissed." By the end of this, Leanne was blushing pink again.

"How sweet," sighed Alicia.

"How cliché," grumbled Katie. "Romance is for saps."

"And saps love romance, so it all works out in the end, doesn't it?" countered Alicia.

"Honestly, Katie, just because you didn't – oh, dear God, here he is," Leanne half-moaned, half-squealed, gripping the table rather tightly. Alicia and Katie looked over their shoulders to see Neville just entering the Great Hall. His eyes flitted back and forth over everyone before finally focusing on Leanne. He set off towards them.

"I haven't spoken to him since I kissed him," whimpered Leanne. "What the bl – I mean, what I am supposed to say?"

"You can swear, I know what word you were going to say," said Patrick, whom Alicia had forgotten about. "It's h-e-double hockey stick."

"Hush, Patty-cakes," hissed Katie to Patrick, who gave his sister an annoyed look. She and Alicia both leant forward at once, whispering words of advice and orders.

"Just be yourself, he kissed you back, didn't he?" whispered Alicia. She instantly regretted the question when Leanne paled even more.

"I don't know – I can't remember!" she cried frantically.

"Talk about Quidditch," commanded Katie. "Boys love Quidditch."

"Neville doesn't play Quidditch, Katie," pointed out Alicia.

"Whatever – just _go_!" growled Katie, glancing in Neville's direction. He was very nearly here now. Leanne stood up half-heartedly, threw one more anguished look at Alicia and Katie, before walking forward to meet Neville. He smiled gently, said something they couldn't hear, and the two wandered out of the Great Hall.

"A box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans that she's back in five minutes," murmured Katie to Alicia.

Ten minutes later, Leanne was still gone, wandering around the remains of the castle with Neville. And Alicia had pocketed a box of candy. "Told you so," she said smugly.

"Oh, shut it," muttered Katie. "Just you shut up."


	4. May 4th, 1998

**carpe diem**

Hermione sat by the lake, alone but not lonely. Her arms wrapped around her knees, she stared out into the water, vaguely wondering if the Giant Squid was still there. Or had it been killed by a misguided spell or explosion during the Battle? She had never liked the Giant Squid (she'd fallen into one of the main tanks at the aquarium when she was eight and had been terrified of squids, sharks, and other assorted sea creatures ever since), but it would still sadden her to think of it dead. It hadn't done anything wrong.

Around her, groups of people were milling about, laughing and embracing and crying. She'd been sitting outside for an hour now, and many of people she'd forgotten were her friends had stopped to say hello; Alicia and Katie had run by, calling something over their shoulders about following Leanne around on a date of some sort, Ernie MacMillan had given a firm handshake and pat on the back, and even Parvati had stopped to hug and cry a bit. She was absolutely positive that she hadn't been friends with Parvati before now, but life threatening situations seem to have that effect on people.

After Parvati had wandered away, going back to sit with Lavender, Hermione fiddled with her hair, breathing in the smells. Amazingly, the grass still smelled sweet and fresh and alive, despite all the people that must have burnt and trodden on it. It was reassuring.

And it also made her think of Ron. He was up somewhere in the castle, sitting with his mother. Hermione, when she'd decided to take a walk down to the lake, hadn't asked him to accompany her; not only did she need to clear her head, but he needed his family and his family needed him at the moment. Talking with Ron could wait. They would have forever to do so, anyway. Hermione blushed at the thought. _Forever _implied years and years of happiness and kissing and eventually getting married and having a family – oh, don't think about the future, she quickly reprimanded herself. Just enjoy now.

"Hey," said a voice behind her, making her jump. She turned around and put a hand over her eyes to smile at Ron, who was smiling sheepishly back at her.

"Hi," she said as he sat down next to her. She tried hard not to stare at his hand, which was centimeters away from her own.

And then neither of them said anything else. Which was ridiculous, because there was so much – _so, _so much – that she felt she needed to say, but none of it would come. She even opened her mouth, but the words seemed to shy away from the sun. What was not awkward a few nights ago, rather, was _necessary_, was most certainly awkward now.

Eventually, Ron cleared his throat. "Er – nice weather we're having?"

Hermione winced. "Has it really come to that?"

"No!" insisted Ron quite forcefully. "No, I just…." He trailed off lamely.

"It's weird," finished Hermione for him.

"In a way," agreed Ron. "But then again… not really, because we've… and then we…"

"Keep talking," said Hermione sarcastically. "You're making perfect sense."

They both laughed, quietly. No need to call attention to the fact that the two of them were obviously sitting out here as more than friends. Several journalists had shown up at Hogwarts last night, and although they'd all been quickly told to leave, no doubt some were lurking on the school grounds.

"It's just," began Ron again, once he'd stopped laughing, "I guess it's a bit odd, because in first year, I told my dad that you were the type that would probably die alone except for your twelve old lady cats –"

"Excuse me!" cried Hermione indignantly.

"But now – well, you know," blushed Ron. He'd never been sweeter. "I guess, well – stop making those faces, Hermione, you're not helping!"

"I'm not making a face!" protested Hermione, falling back and letting her head hit the grass as she started laughing again, Ron quickly joining in.

After a few moments of breathless laughing, Hermione sighed, sitting back up and running a hand through her hair. A beetle was crawling around on her leg, and she quickly brushed it off, thinking of a certain journalist who would no doubt be scheming her way into Hogwarts.

"You think Rita Skeeter's here?" asked Ron, following her train of thought.

"She's probably crawling around in the dirt by our feet as we speak," sighed Hermione.

Naturally, Ron quickly pulled his legs in, his eyes darting through the grass as he searched for the old cow. "Should I try to squash her?" he asked seriously.

Hermione hesitated, biting her lip – it was a _very _tempting offer – but finally shook her head. "Who cares what she writes?"

"The entire wizarding world, probably."

"Except for me," shrugged Hermione. "I might care tomorrow, but right now – oh, I don't know. Everything's too strange for me to think about the future._ Carpe diem_, you know?"

"I have no idea what that means," Ron told her. She stared at him.

"Really? Hmm, it must be only Muggles then. Let's see… Carpe Diem – it's means to just not worry about the future, you know, because tomorrow is going to come whether you make a big fuss about it or not, and you should just enjoy today because another one might not come like it. Or something like that," concluded Hermione, blushing. It didn't help that the wind was picking up now, blowing hair in her face.

"I like that," said Ron, smiling to himself. "Like my dad always used to say, 'They call it the present for a reason'. You know, because it's a gift. It's a play on words."

"I picked that up myself, actually," said Hermione dryly. A piece of hair blew into her mouth, and she made a frustrated noise. "Oh, I hate this! Sometimes, I just want to chop it all off."

"Hermione, relax," said Ron, clearly amused. "I got this." Gently, hesitantly, he reached out, brushing her hair out of her face. Everything seemed to slow down, stop entirely, except for Ron, who was moving towards her much too fast and yet still not quick enough.

It was a much different kiss than the other one. Still lovely, still kept her dizzy, but this one wasn't victory and passion inside a crumbling reality. This one was victory and passion with a hint of forever (to Hermione, it reminded her of the fragrant scent of orange blossoms). _There's more of this to come_, the kiss seemed to whisper as it embraced her.

Plus, this time she could hear the added sounds of wolf whistles and a voice that sounded suspiciously like Dean saying, "All right, Katie pay up – one Chocolate Frog, please." But Hermione didn't care.

Eventually (regrettably), their lips parted and they each pulled away – a few breaths away. "_That_," breathed Hermione after a few heartbeats, just loud enough for the two of them to hear, "was muchbetter than nice weather." It was shockingly risky, stunningly scandalous for her to say.

She could feel him smiling as he kissed her again.


	5. May 5th, 1998

**when life gives you lemons**

Cho really didn't want to talk right now.

But Dennis Creevey. Would. Not. _Leave._ He was sitting next to her, babbling about his pet cat and the trouble he'd gotten in at school and how when he was younger, he loved delivering the milk with his father...

It was giving her a splitting headache. But she didn't have the heart to tell him she wasn't in the mood to be his personal shrink. She just couldn't deal with it right now. There was too much going on.

Cho was staring off into spaces, not even pretending to listen to Dennis ramble on about everything under the sun. People were still celebrating, which struck Cho as somewhat excessive – three days had gone by. Did these people ever get tired? Apparently not. All of the girls she had once talked about boys with were chattering and laughing and she had seen Professor Sprout and Hagrid laughing over something, both positively drunk. McGonagall was smiling. _Smiling_.

Not to mention the _in love_ feel that surrounded everything. It made her sick. Neville and Leanne were constantly walking around the castle at midnight, always running into Cho whenever she found she couldn't sleep. Ron and Hermione must've gotten together at some point while the two of them were sharing a tent, because they were like two animals in heat. Always kissing, always sprawled out on the grounds. And Cho had spotted Harry and Ginny several times together. Not kissing, not holding hands. Just talking.

She couldn't find the anger inside of her, because she really didn't hate or even dislike Harry. Or Ginny, for that matter. Her romance with Harry had been short and unsatisfactory, and it had died long ago. The upheaving feeling in her stomach when she noticed the two of them had nothing to do with left over feelings for Harry.

It was a bitter feeling, a jealousy of what she had. Why had she not found someone like that? Everyone else had, and it was so unfair! She'd been the first to fall in love out of them all, the first to fall out of love (she was pushed, actually), and yet, despite everything she'd been through, she was alone. By herself. On her own.

She suddenly noticed that everything was all together too quiet. Dennis had stopped talking and was staring at her expectantly. She blinked, slowly coming back from nowhere. "Sorry?" she said, her voice raw from all the silence.

"I asked what your favourite movie was," said Dennis, sounding slightly crestfallen that she hadn't been listening.

"My favourite movie…" murmured Cho. She'd seen about three movies in her life time. "Well, I – I like that American movie, the one about all the kids who go looking for treasure."

"_The Goonies_?" guessed Dennis, perking up.

"Yeah," said Cho awkwardly. "That sounds right."

"I love that movie!" enthused Dennis. "Who's your favourite character? I like Chunk, I think he's funny."

"Yeah, I like him, too," muttered Cho. She had no idea what he was talking about.

"I used to watch it all the time with my dad," continued Dennis (and here he goes). "Colin used to be really scared of it when he was little –"

And Dennis abruptly stopped talking again, only this time the silence was not only disconcerting, but hollow. Cho felt guilt well in her eyes. Of course. Colin had been killed in the Battle.

"We were in hiding when Neville called everyone back," mumbled Dennis. "And I know we should've not come, but we couldn't have just _ignored _it. Dumbledore's Army was supposed to stick together. Colin didn't want me to come, but I came anyway." He paused to wipe his nose on his sleeve. To take a breath too big for such a little boy. "Yesterday, Neville took me into the Muggle village nearby so I could call my mum and dad and let them know I was okay. They wanted me to come home, but I told them I wanted to stay for a few days with everyone who won the Battle, because we were celebrating." He hesitated. "I – I didn't tell them about Colin. They're coming to school today to pick me up, and they're going to be really sad, but – but do you think they'll be angry with me?" The last part was said in a whisper, his eyes wide and completely trusting. Cho's already completely screwed up heart broke.

"No, I… they'll understand, Dennis," she eventually said, stumbling over her words. He began to cry. Cho stared up at the ceiling, trying not hate him and everyone here. She'd contacted her father through Floo Powder a few days ago and convinced him to let her stay at Hogwarts, even though she desperately wanted to leave. Hogwarts may be overly cheerful, but her home would be dark and suffocating and full of tears. She couldn't stand that, not with everything that's happened.

But she was starting to regret her decision. There were too many memories here, too many reminders of everyone who abandoned her.

First of all, there was Cedric. She hated him for leaving. After all, they'd been in love. But she also hated him because his death shattered all those empty promises her parents had made. With his death, the innocence of her childhood had ended. "See you later then," were the last words he ever said to her before entering the maze.

Then her mum, who had disappeared and wasn't coming back. Not 'wasn't coming back' as in 'dead', but 'wasn't coming back' as in 'left for a better situation'. Cho hated her for not loving their family enough to fix it. "Do you want whole bread or white?" her mother had asked Cho before leaving for the grocery store. She never returned.

Finally, Marietta. She'd been killed in this stupid Battle, killed because she'd wanted to come back and fight with Cho. "_Impedio!" _she'd screamed before the green light had come from out of nowhere and slammed Marietta in the back.

Cho found herself taking Dennis's hand and squeezing it tightly. She hoped it reassured him. Because it didn't make her feel better.


End file.
